Hard Disk Basics

Hard disks were invented in the 1950s. They started as large disks up to 20 inches in diameter holding just a few megabytes. They were originally called "fixed disks" or "Winchesters" (a code name used for a popular IBM product). They later became known as "hard disks" to distinguish them from floppy disks. Hard disks have a hard platter that holds the magnetic medium, as opposed to the flexible plastic film found in tapes and floppies.

At the simplest level, a hard disk is not that different from a cassette tape. Both use the same magnetic recording techniques. Hard disks and cassette tapes also share the major benefits of magnetic storage -- they can be easily erased and rewritten, and it will "remember" the magnetic flux patterns stored onto the medium for many years.

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